


The Nurse's Visitor

by slightlytookish



Category: Merlin (BBC)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Nurses, One of My Favorites
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-08-30
Updated: 2010-08-30
Packaged: 2017-10-11 08:39:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/110488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slightlytookish/pseuds/slightlytookish
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the following kinkme_merlin prompt: Uther Pendragon, in an effort to boost his political image, funds a new wing at a children's hospital. He sends Arthur through every month to make an appearance at the hospital, shake hands, kiss babies, and check to see that his obscenely large portrait in the hall is properly lit. On one such occasion, Arthur has a mishap and is mildly hurt (bump on the head, scrape, particularly bad hangnail, etc). Merlin is the nurse that helps to patch him up. Suddenly those monthly visits have a lot more appeal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Nurse's Visitor

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [Непростой посетитель](https://archiveofourown.org/works/612544) by [bitter_zephyr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bitter_zephyr/pseuds/bitter_zephyr)



> Thank you to forest_rose for the beta and Britpick.

It wasn't that Arthur was _bad_ at this sort of thing - in fact, he'd say that he wasn't bad at anything, really, but that kind of talk was dangerous around Morgana, whose stiletto heels were deadly - it was just that others were better at dealing with children.

Oh, he did his best to be attentive and kind but he always felt a little awkward around them, especially when they started crying or, God forbid, tried to hug him. He usually let Morgana deal with the criers or huggers, but she had come down with a nasty cold the other day and so their monthly joint visit to the Uther Pendragon Children's Ward at the local hospital had turned into a solo appearance.

The afternoon had had a rocky start - little Mordred in room 112 had tried to bite Arthur's hand when he saw that Morgana wasn't there - but Arthur soon hit his stride. He read a story to Rebecca in room 157 and had a long, lovely chat about football with Johnny in room 131.

He was on his way to make sure that his father's portrait in the day room was properly lit (the last time Uther had visited had been right before the election and he had been livid when he saw that there was only one light trained on the picture and not the three he had ordered when he had made his donation. He hadn't appreciated Morgana's pointed reminder that none of the children cared what he looked like anyway, since they couldn't vote yet) when he noticed a slick substance on the hideously green floor.

Arthur pulled a face and hoped it was only water. Turning on his heel, he made his way back to the nurses' station he had just walked by when a passing hospital worker caught his attention. "Oi, you there!" he said. "Clean that, will you?"

The hospital worker was a tall and slim young man with dark hair, protruding ears, and a friendly smile that quickly turned into a frown. "I'm not a porter," he said coldly. And then, under his breath: "Prat."

"I heard that!" Arthur said. He squinted down at the ID clipped to the man's shirt. "_Merlin_."

Merlin continued to glare at him. "I'll find someone to assist you," he muttered before continuing down the corridor, looking so surly that Arthur gave an outraged laugh.

"You can't speak to me like that," he said, jogging after him. "Do you have any idea who I am? I could have you sacked, you know. I-" And he really wasn't paying attention to where he was going because his foot landed right in the spill and he went skidding across the hall, knocking his head on a door frame and landing in an undignified heap.

Arthur's face was already burning with embarrassment when Merlin reached him.

"Are you all right?" he said. Whatever anger he had been feeling just a moment ago had instantly been replaced by professional concern as he crouched next to Arthur and helped him sit up.

"I'm fine, really," Arthur said, but Merlin ignored him as he drew a penlight out of his pocket and flashed it into Arthur's eyes.

"Your pupils aren't uneven," he said, putting the light away. "But you are bleeding. You'd better come with me." He hopped to his feet and held out a hand for Arthur to take.

"I'm not a _girl_, Merlin," he grumbled but he took the offered hand and allowed Merlin to lead him to a nearby examining room. He felt very foolish as he sat gingerly on the child-sized bed, his legs dangling awkwardly over the side as Merlin bustled about collecting bandages and gauze and snapping on a pair of rubber gloves.

"Will I need stitches?" Arthur said, trying not to flinch as Merlin cleaned the wound on his forehead. His head didn't hurt - well, not much - but there seemed to be a lot of blood and he wasn't sure if he trusted someone who had just called him a prat to stitch him up if he needed it, even if Merlin's hands were gentler than Arthur had expected.

"You need a plaster," Merlin said, sounding amused. At Arthur's doubtful look he smiled reassuringly. "There's often a lot of blood where head wounds are concerned, but you have just a small cut that should heal quickly. Unless you want to see a doctor? I can go and find Dr. Gaius so he can tell you the same thing."

Arthur quickly shook his head, thinking back to how the elderly doctor had arched a disapproving eyebrow at him earlier in the afternoon when he'd had to rescue him from Mordred's sharp teeth. He didn't want to risk Dr. Gaius' wrath again. "No, no - that's quite all right." He made a show of sizing up Merlin as he disposed of the bloody dressings. "I suppose they taught you how to put on a plaster in nursing school."

"Among other things," Merlin said wryly. He opened a cupboard and peered inside. "Right then. Iron Man or Winnie the Pooh?"

"_What_?"

"Iron Man," Merlin decided, pulling a bandage out of a box. Arthur had a brief glimpse of a miniature Robert Downey, Jr. glaring up at him before the plaster was placed on his forehead just above his left eyebrow.

"There," Merlin said, smiling down at him indulgently like he probably did to the dozens of children that resided on the ward. "All better."

For some reason he couldn't fathom, Arthur felt another blush coming on.

"Are you feeling any dizziness or pain?" Merlin said, once more checking Arthur's eyes with the light and remaining completely oblivious to the ferocious blushing occurring just below. "What about nausea? I really can fetch Dr. Gaius if you're not feeling well." He ran his fingers through Arthur's hair, presumably to check for more cuts and bruises, and it took all of Arthur's willpower not to lean into that gentle touch.

He must have hit his head harder than he'd thought.

"No, I'm all right, really," he said, finally pulling himself together and pulling away, albeit reluctantly. "In fact, I should be going now."

"Are you visiting someone?" Merlin asked. His expression turned sympathetic. "Or - do you have a child here? As a patient?"

Arthur laughed. "Good lord, no! I don't have any kids. I'm here on business. My father is the benefactor of the children's ward."

Merlin's eyes grew wide. "You're-?"

"Arthur Pendragon, yes." He couldn't help smirking a little as the news sank in and two bright spots of colour formed high on Merlin's cheekbones.

"You weren't kidding when you said you could have me sacked."

"Nope," Arthur replied, and because he was feeling generous and a little woozy he decided to put Merlin out of his misery. "But I won't. I was rude and you insulted me, but then you patched me up. And now I'll make sure you aren't sacked. I'd say we're even now, wouldn't you?"

Merlin chewed his bottom lip for a long and thoughtful moment, as if he couldn't believe that Arthur was really going to let it all go just like that, before he broke into an enormous, brilliant smile. It was the sort of smile that completely transformed his face and made Arthur's heart skip a beat.

"Yeah," he said, still grinning. "We're even."

_And I'm doomed_, Arthur thought as he smiled in return. _Completely and utterly doomed._

*

"You seem much more excited than usual about visiting the hospital," Morgana said, looking at him sidelong as they got into the lift. "Don't tell me you're looking forward to seeing Mordred again."

Arthur snorted. "I'm not going anywhere near Gollum today."

"Don't call him that," Morgana said, giving him a light swat on the arm even as she smiled. "He's a very sweet boy."

"With an unhealthy attachment to you, which makes him anything but sweet."

She rolled her eyes. "So what is it, really? You're never in a good mood when Uther sends us on one of his little missions but today you're surprisingly pleasant. Have you found a pretty nurse to flirt with?"

Arthur gulped. "Not exactly." He hadn't been thinking about Merlin at all in the past few weeks, not really. So what if he'd rented Iron Man? He'd missed seeing it at the cinema and wanted to know what all the fuss was about. It certainly had nothing to do with the idiotic plaster that Merlin had chosen for him. And if he'd briefly considered visiting the hospital again before his next scheduled appearance, well, it had absolutely nothing to do with a certain ~~adorable~~ lanky and impertinent nurse. _Somebody_ had to make sure that his father's portrait was properly lit, after all.

The lift came to a stop with a sharp ding, pulling Arthur away from his thoughts. He couldn't keep his eyes from straying to the nurses' station to see if Merlin was there - and he wasn't, Arthur noted disappointedly - before he joined Morgana on their tour of the ward.

It was shaping up to be a visit like any other, and Arthur supposed that he should be grateful that he wasn't slipping on mystery spills and bashing his head on door frames but he really had hoped to see Merlin again, even if it was just for a minute. So after reading one book each to Angela and Tim, he left Morgana talking with Edwin, the little boy who had been badly burned in a fire, and made his way over to the nurses' station.

The nurse at the desk had her dark curls arranged in an untidy bun and was scribbling furiously in a chart. When Arthur cleared his throat to get her attention she glanced up, looking rather frazzled.

"Yes, may I help - oh, Mr. Pendragon!" she said, looking surprised to see him. "May I be of assistance?"

"Yes" - Arthur quickly glanced at her ID card and smiled his most charming smile - "Gwen. It's - well, it's about Merlin."

"Oh no," she groaned. "I _told_ him to leave the linen cupboard alone. Did he get tangled in the sheets again?"

"Er. No?"

"Oh," she said, smiling."That's a relief. It took us ages to get him sorted last time and Dr. Gaius was quite grumpy afterwards, even though the children thought it was hilarious. What did you want to know?"

"Well, I - I just wanted to know if he was here. Working." Arthur fidgeted awkwardly with his tie. "Today."

Gwen looked intrigued but she didn't press for more information. "He went for a walk with Freya. I believe you'll find them in the day room."

"Thank you," Arthur replied, flashing her a smile that felt much more genuine before continuing along the corridor. When he reached the day room he stopped abruptly in the doorway, watching.

Under the stern gaze of Uther Pendragon's portrait Merlin was pushing a small girl - Freya - in her wheelchair. He wheeled her along the empty row of chairs, stopping and starting abruptly and making her clap her hands in delight.

"Race me, Merlin!" she laughingly demanded. "Race me!" Merlin grinned and pushed her a little faster, and though he wasn't racing her by a long shot clearly it was enough for Freya.

"Again, again!" she cried. "Come on Merlin, please!"

"All right, we'll have one more race but then it's back to your room so you can rest," he said firmly, turning her wheelchair sharply and making her laugh again. Arthur watched Merlin push Freya back the other way, looking down at her with such happiness and care, and he had to swallow around the sudden lump he felt in his throat.

He slowly backed away from the door, not wanting to interrupt them by calling attention to himself, and headed back to Morgana and Edwin with the sound of Freya's laughter echoing behind him.

*

He was pacing just outside Mordred's room some time later, impatiently waiting for Morgana to conclude her visit but not quite impatient enough to tempt the little devil's ire by interrupting them, when Merlin found him.

"Hey," he said, smiling brightly. "Gwen said you were looking for me earlier."

"Yeah, I - I just wanted to say hello," Arthur replied. Merlin had changed into jeans and a blue hoodie and had a bag slung over his shoulder. "Going home, then?"

Merlin nodded. "I just finished my shift." He leaned close to inspect Arthur's forehead, causing Arthur to momentarily stop breathing. "Your cut healed well."

"It did," he replied, unconsciously reaching up to rub the skin just above his eyebrow. "I had good help, you know."

Merlin ducked his head and smiled, looking rather bashful. "It was nothing. I'm used to dealing with cranky patients."

"Oi!" Arthur's glare had no effect; in fact, it seemed to make Merlin laugh harder. "There you go insulting me again. You really can't talk to me like that, Merlin."

"I'm sure you'll have me sacked if it gets to be too much."

"Just as long as you know your place."

"I don't think you'll ever let me forget it."

Arthur eyed him thoughtfully. "I wouldn't, though. Sack you, I mean. I saw you earlier with that little girl."

"Freya?"

He nodded. "I've visited her a couple of times. She's always so quiet and withdrawn, so distant. Even my step-sister couldn't get through to her, and she's much better at dealing with children than I am. But you - I've never seen Freya look as happy as she did with you this afternoon."

Now Merlin really did look embarrassed. "I'm just doing my job," he said, shrugging. "Sometimes that includes pushing a little girl in her wheelchair, if it means she'll take her medicine and get some rest without fussing. And it keeps the kids happy. I like seeing them happy, especially the ones that are sadder and lonelier than the rest."

"Look at you," Arthur said, trying his best not to sound or look as impressed as he felt. It really wouldn't do to give Merlin an ego. "A regular Florence Nightingale."

Merlin rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Believe me, I've heard every kind of joke and insult about nursing," he said. "My mate Will specialises in them."

"Sorry," Arthur said, abashed.

"Don't worry about it," Merlin said, grinning. "I'm immune to them by now." He glanced at Mordred's room. "Is that your step-sister in there?"

Arthur nodded resignedly. "She's formed an unholy alliance with the little menace."

"Mordred isn't that bad. He's just a little... intense."

"And violent! He nearly bit off my hand the last time I tried to go in there." Arthur peeked inside the room. "It looks like they're finishing up. _Finally_."

"I'd better go, too," Merlin said, hitching his bag higher on his shoulder. "It was good seeing you again, Arthur."

"Likewise." He smiled politely and watched Merlin go, priding himself on not blushing once or otherwise making a fool of himself. And then, just as Merlin reached the double doors at the end of the corridor, he ruined it all.

"I watched Iron Man!" he blurted loudly.

Merlin stopped and turned around, and even from a distance Arthur could see the amused expression on his face. "Did you?" he said. "What did you think?"

"It wasn't bad," Arthur conceded, and failed to keep from fidgeting nervously with his tie. "I heard there's going to be a sequel."

"Are you sure you liked it well enough for that?"

"I was thinking rather more about the company," he said. "I wondered if we could possibly see it together."

Merlin tilted his head and studied him as though he were trying to figure out if Arthur was teasing again. At last he seemed to come to a decision and smiled.

"Possibly," he said, and Arthur's heart rate doubled. "I'll even bring you another plaster," he added, his grin turning cheeky as he finally turned and went through the door.

Arthur was glad that he only just avoided doing a victory dance when he heard Morgana's voice a moment later.

"Why, Arthur," she said, leaning against Mordred's door and unsuccessfully struggling not to laugh. "You really did find a cute nurse to flirt with!"

*

"I'm marrying him!"

"No, _I'm_ marrying him!"

"Are not!"

"Am too!"

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. He felt a massive headache coming on.

"Girls," he said calmly, doing his best to keep Vivian and Sophia from working themselves up even more. "There's no need-"

They began to wail.

Arthur leapt up from his seat and made a grab for the tissues. He was beginning to sweat. There was a reason why he always let Morgana deal with the crying children and that was because his first instinct at the sight of tears was to retreat in a very tactical and manly sort of fashion (it certainly wasn't "running and hiding," whatever Morgana said).

But Morgana wasn't here now and so he stood there shoving tissues into their hands and awkwardly patting their heads, whilst desperately wishing that they would stop crying. At least they weren't hugging him, Arthur thought. That was the only thing that could make this situation any worse.

As if they'd read his mind, the girls flung their arms around his knees and held on for dear life.

Arthur groaned.

"What's going on?"

His head whipped around in time to see Merlin hurrying into the room and looking at Sophia and Vivian in concern.

"I don't know what happened," Arthur hissed frantically. "One moment we were reading _Little Miss Trouble_ and the next they were arguing."

"Hey," Merlin said softly, crouching down before the girls and gently prying them from Arthur's legs. Arthur collapsed into his chair and loosened his tie, thoroughly shaken. "What's wrong?"

Vivian sniffled loudly. "S-Sophia said she's going to marry Arthur when he grows up."

Merlin's lips twitched. "When _Arthur_ grows up?" he said. "How old do you think Arthur is?"

Vivian looked down and counted her fingers. "Ten!" she declared at last.

"I think he's eleven," Sophia said primly. "And he's going to marry me."

"Is not!"

"Is so!"

"Shh," Merlin said, all calm and soothing, and Arthur breathed a sigh of relief when there wasn't another outburst of tears. "Why do you think Arthur is going to marry you, Sophia?"

"Because he gave me a sticker," she said, pointing to the glittery blue flower stuck to the back of her hand.

"He gave me one too," Vivian said, shoving her hand in front of Merlin's face so he could see the sparkly butterfly.

"Hmm," Merlin said, gravely looking from one sticker to the next. "You know what I think? I think Arthur likes you both very much and you're making him very sad by arguing."

The girls glanced at each other warily before turning to look at Arthur.

"Sorry."

"Sorry."

Their lips were starting to wobble again and their eyes were beginning to water and Arthur clung to the tiny book as though it were a lifeline.

"That's all right!" he said with feigned joviality. "Shall I continue reading?"

"I think Vivian and Sophia need a little rest after all this excitement," Merlin said. "You can read to them once they're settled."

Arthur sidled up to Merlin as he helped Vivian into her bed. "I didn't think I'd see you today," he said. "I thought you might have the day off."

Merlin looked up from fluffing Vivian's pillow and smiled. "I didn't expect to see you either," he said. "Today isn't one of your scheduled visits."

A strange, tingly feeling settled in the pit of Arthur's stomach. "And what do you know of my schedule, Merlin?"

"I may have checked the calendar," he replied, his smile growing bigger.

"That's very thorough of you."

"I'm a very thorough person." He looked down as he tucked Vivian's blanket around her. "So... Iron Man. Is that still going to happen?"

The tingly feeling worked its way up to Arthur's chest. "I'm still game," he said, certain that he was smiling like a maniac but finding it impossible to stop. "Are you?"

Merlin glanced at him once and quickly looked away. "Yeah," he said. "Definitely."

Arthur wondered if it was bad form to jump for joy on one of the beds. Probably. Besides, Merlin would have to fix the sheets, and he seemed to have a history of getting tangled in them, and Arthur really shouldn't be thinking about beds and sheets and Merlin right now.

"Hang on," he said suddenly. "We went from 'possibly' seeing a film together to 'definitely.' What changed?"

Merlin's ears turned a very interesting shade of red.

Meanwhile, Sophia had managed to climb on to Vivian's bed, resulting in a heated, whispered exchange between the girls.

"Come on, Sophia, you have to rest now," Merlin said, looking eager to change the subject. "You can talk to Vivian later."

They looked up at Merlin and Arthur and dissolved into giggles, their earlier argument apparently forgotten. Arthur scratched his head in confusion. _Girls_.

"We know who's going to marry Arthur when he grows up!" Vivian said in a singsong voice. The girls' laughter grew louder. "Merlin!"

"I think it's a little early to be thinking about anyone's marriage just yet," Merlin said, but his ears turned redder and he wouldn't look at Arthur as he settled Sophia in her own bed. Arthur hid a smile of his own, opened the book, and cleared his throat.

"_'Here comes trouble,' people used to say_," he read. "_And who do you think would come walking along?_"

*

Arthur never discovered whether it was the crying or the giggly matchmaking that had exhausted Vivian and Sophia more, but they were both fast asleep before he reached the end of the book. He kept on reading, though, both out of a fear that if he stopped they'd wake up (and start crying again) and also because he'd always been rather fond of the Little Miss and Mr. Men books (not that he'd ever admit it).

But after he finished and successfully tiptoed out of the room he stood for a moment in the middle of the corridor, deep in thought. Merlin was nowhere in sight; most likely he was off doing important things like checking temperatures and cleaning wounds, and Arthur supposed that he really ought to go home now. But he didn't want to leave without saying goodbye to him. This may be shaping up to be Arthur's most awkward attempt at wooing someone ever, but even he knew better than that.

So he took his time saying goodbye to the kids and the other nurses, and dawdled a bit by the nurses' station in hopes that Merlin would surface, and when he finally decided that he couldn't lurk anymore without being, well, a lurker, he scribbled down his name and phone number on a borrowed sticky note as Gwen looked on in undisguised amusement.

He was putting on his jacket with clear intentions of going when he heard a voice behind him.

"Oh," Merlin said, sounding disappointed. "I didn't realise you were leaving."

Arthur froze with one arm halfway in the sleeve and spun around.

"I left you a note!" he said, feeling oddly desperate to prove that he hadn't made some major courtship blunder. "With Gwen!"

She slid the paper across the desk to Merlin and went back to hiding her smile behind a chart.

Merlin glanced down at Arthur's messy scrawl and smiled, which Arthur supposed was a good sign, but he wasn't going to take any chances and so he pressed on.

"I figured you were busy," he said and nodded at the tray of ominous-looking needles that Merlin was carrying before shifting imperceptibly away.

"It's been a busy day," Merlin agreed, still smiling even though he drooped a little against the desk, looking tired. "But I have a break in ten minutes," he said, perking up, "and I was hoping that we could, I don't know, get a coffee or something? If you didn't mind waiting around?"

Arthur thought about the mess of papers and folders that he'd thrown in his bag when he'd left work early for this spontaneous, late afternoon hospital visit, and how those reports weren't going to read themselves before the meeting he had to attend in the morning, and grinned.

"I don't mind waiting," he said, shrugging his jacket on the rest of the way. Or at least he tried to, but somehow he'd got himself tangled in the fabric, and for one long and agonising moment he was terrified that he was actually going to rip off the sleeve in his attempt to free himself.

"Wait," Merlin said, his voice and his expression suddenly going soft. He set the tray down on the desk and carefully untangled Arthur's sleeve. Distantly Arthur could hear strange squealing sounds coming from Gwen but he ignored them and focused only on the feel of Merlin's hands on his shoulders and his arms and the look of concentration on Merlin's face. He stood utterly still, not wanting to ruin this moment at all, and allowed Merlin to guide his other arm into its sleeve and fuss with his collar.

"There you go," Merlin said, smoothing down the lapels and still smiling that gentle smile. His hands lingered for another moment, his fingers resting long and pale on the dark grey of Arthur's jacket, before he seemed to realise just how close they were standing and quickly stepped away, looking suddenly shy.

"Thanks," Arthur said, watching as Merlin gathered up his tray once more. Gwen was watching too, having given up all pretences of work to sit there, smiling dreamily at them with her chin in her hand.

"It was nothing," Merlin replied, pink-cheeked and apparently finding it difficult to make eye contact. "So, er, see you in ten minutes? I'll meet you in the day room?"

"Definitely," Arthur said, and Merlin finally met his eyes and smiled even as his blush deepened. He turned away but immediately halted and awkwardly shifted to hold the tray with one hand so that he could reach for the note with Arthur's number on it. He shoved the paper into his pocket, smiled once more at Arthur, and went back to work.

Behind the desk Gwen sighed happily. Arthur gave her a cheeky grin and turned on his heel, heading to the day room with a cheerful bounce to his step.

*

Arthur wasn't nervous at all.

He hadn't fumbled one of his reports out of his bag and gazed down at it unseeingly just to have something to do as he waited for Merlin. He wasn't glancing down at his watch every two minutes and he certainly wasn't worrying about whether a quick jaunt to get a cup of coffee counted as a first date or not.

Nearly twenty minutes passed before Merlin finally appeared, with his familiar oversized hoodie thrown over his scrubs in a way that Arthur absolutely didn't find endearing.

"Sorry I'm late," he said, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "One sight of needles and half the ward starts crying."

"If you're not up to going-"

"I'll be all right," he said with a smile. "Coffee will help. I see you've been busy, too. What is that?" He peered over Arthur's shoulder to look at the report, standing close enough that Arthur could smell the strong soap the hospital used and, underneath that, something he identified as purely Merlin. For some strange reason it made him want to blush, and he quickly ducked his head and busied himself with putting the report away.

"Just something for work," he said. "Annual reports that I have to read for a meeting tomorrow." He zipped his bag and smiled up at Merlin, his almost-blush safely averted. "Didn't you want a coffee?"

According to Merlin, the coffee in the hospital was more like hot water than actual coffee, and so he led Arthur to a small café just down the road. They didn't talk much on the way, and once Arthur glanced over at Merlin and found him completely engrossed in tapping away on his mobile. He felt a rush of embarrassment - he was too boring even to walk with, apparently - when his phone suddenly beeped.

_Now you have my number too :)_ he read off the screen, and looked up in time to see Merlin stowing his phone away in his pocket.

Arthur grinned, his heart suddenly feeling light again, and bumped shoulders with Merlin, who gave him an odd, amused sort of look that seemed to say, _You're completely mad but I like you anyway._ At least that's how Arthur interpreted it.

*

Inside the shop they settled at a small table at the back with their coffees (which Merlin had insisted on paying for) and little cakes (which Arthur had insisted on buying).

"Thanks for rescuing me earlier," Arthur said. "With Vivian and Sophia. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come along."

"I'm sure you'd have thought of something," Merlin said. "You're really good with the kids."

"I'm really not," he said. "I always let Morgana handle the crying ones. I'm actually pretty useless, but don't tell her I said that."

Merlin frowned and set aside the enormous coffee he'd been sipping. "You're not useless at all," he said, leaning forward in his chair and looking surprisingly earnest. "Do you know that the kids talk about you and Morgana all the time? Your visits mean so much to them."

Arthur shrugged uncomfortably. He felt a bit awkward, being praised for doing so little. "It's - it's nothing, really. My father is the one who sends us. He wants us to help improve his political image."

"I don't believe that," Merlin said. "Maybe that's what it was in the beginning, but not now. There isn't even an election going on and yet you and Morgana are still making regular visits."

Arthur shrugged again and mumbled something about habit and duty. Merlin shook his head.

"Look," he said. "Take today, for instance. I don't believe that you made an unscheduled appearance just for your father's sake or - or to see me." Merlin frowned and reached for his coffee again, peering down at it as if it was the most interesting thing he'd ever seen. He bit his lip, looking embarrassed, and Arthur hesitated for a moment before he reached out and rested his palm against the back of Merlin's hand where it was clutching his coffee.

"I hate to break it to you," he admitted. "But seeing you was my biggest reason for coming here today."

Merlin's ears turned red again. "But it wasn't the only reason," he insisted. "Or else you would have just waited for me at the nurses' station. You wouldn't have bothered to visit the kids and read to them and bring them stickers of all things, if you didn't care about them."

"Of _course_ I care about them," he said and Merlin looked up and smiled brightly.

"I knew it," he said, turning his hand over to hold Arthur's. His fingers felt warm from the coffee, and Arthur squeezed back and did a very poor job of hiding a smile of his own.

*

"You didn't have to walk me back," Merlin said after they'd lingered over their coffee for as long as they could before returning to the hospital. They couldn't really expect Gwen to cover the rest of Merlin's shift for him, even if she had squealed a bit when she saw them leaving together.

"I parked my car here," Arthur said. "But I would've walked you back anyway."

Merlin ducked his head, just a bit, though he looked pleased. "See you soon?"

"Yeah," Arthur replied. "I expect I'll be making more unscheduled visits in the near future." He looked at Merlin, taking in the fall of his hair and the lines of his cheekbones and the curve of his neck, and leaned in on a sudden impulse to kiss him.

The angle was all wrong at first, but Merlin tilted his chin up and suddenly his lips were there and he was kissing back and everything was all right. When they pulled apart - too soon, Arthur thought - Merlin was looking at him with wide eyes. His tongue darted out to swipe at his lips and Arthur wanted to kiss him again and again and never let him go.

But Merlin had to go back to work, and Arthur had to go home and prepare for tomorrow, and he forced himself to back away. "Soon," he promised.

"Yeah," Merlin said, "soon." He shook his head slightly, as if to clear his thoughts, and gave Arthur one last longing look before he went inside.

Arthur's phone beeped again when he reached his car.

_Hi_, it said on the screen.

_Miss me already?_ he typed back.

_Maybe_, came the response, and Arthur couldn't keep from grinning as he drove away.

*

It wasn't nerves that made Arthur stop in the middle of the hospital car park to check the cinema listings one last time. He didn't _get_ nervous, not even when he was finally about to go on his first date with Merlin. He was merely diligent, and diligent people always compulsively checked the listings to make sure that the cinema hadn't suddenly developed a Robert Downey, Jr. allergy and still intended to show Iron Man 2. Didn't they?

Once his mobile confirmed that, yes, they were still showing Iron Man 2 that evening, Arthur tucked his phone away and eyed himself critically. Visiting the hospital dressed as he was in jeans and a jumper felt strange, a bit like accidentally going to work in his pyjamas (which had only happened once and certainly wasn't funny enough for Leon to remind people about at every single office party).

But Morgana had bullied him into wearing this outfit, telling him in no uncertain terms that he couldn't wear one of his boring old suits and assuring him that the blue jumper would bring out his eyes. Arthur was more concerned with the way it brought out his biceps, but the sentiment was still the same and he agreed to listen to her just this once.

Behind him a car's horn beeped loudly, startling him from his thoughts and reminding him that he was standing in the middle of a car park. He waved apologetically at the impatient driver and took a deep breath to steel himself before he went inside to find Merlin.

He was early - Merlin's shift didn't end for another twenty-five minutes - but Arthur secretly hoped that he'd be able to charm Gwen into covering for him so that Merlin could leave work early. But when he arrived at the children's ward he was startled to see that someone else was sitting at Gwen's usual place at the nurses' station.

It was another nurse. A male nurse. A very male nurse who was smiling up at Merlin in an alarmingly flirty way.

Arthur made it from the lift to the nurses' station in a record time.

"Hello, Merlin," he said, throwing a nonchalant arm around his shoulders and tugging him close. "Who are you?" he demanded, glaring down at the nurse behind the desk.

His brusque attitude seemed to go unnoticed because the guy immediately stood and offered his hand, his smile growing even bigger.

"You must be Arthur," he said. "I'm Lancelot. I've heard a lot about you from Merlin and Gwen."

Arthur ignored his hand. "You know Gwen?" he said, which he supposed was a ridiculous thing to ask considering that they all obviously worked together but he was still feeling a bit too jealous at the moment to be completely sensible.

Lancelot laughed. "I should hope so," he said. "She's my wife."

This Lancelot chap seemed like a decent fellow after all, Arthur decided. "So good to meet you!" he said, belatedly taking his hand and giving it an enthusiastic shake.

With the crisis safely averted, Arthur realised that Merlin had gone oddly quiet beside him. Hoping that he hadn't offended him by being so rude to Lancelot, he turned to look at him and got the distinct impression that Merlin was checking out his arse.

"Hello, _Mer_lin," he said again, and tried not to laugh when Merlin looked up and smiled apologetically.

"It's just, well. You look different," he said. "I've never seen you in jeans before."

"You didn't think I'd wear a suit, did you?" Arthur scoffed as though he hadn't strongly considered it.

"I wasn't sure what to expect," Merlin replied. "Morgana rang here earlier to say that she was going to disown you if you turned up in a suit. She also said that I had her permission to laugh at you if you did, but I wouldn't have done that."

"How nice of you."

"Yeah. I wouldn't want you to sack me." Merlin crept closer, still smiling as his hands came up to rest at Arthur's waist. "Hi," he said and darted in to press a light, quick kiss on Arthur's lips.

"I could have you sacked for that, you know."

"For kissing you at work?"

"For not kissing me long enough," he said and leaned in to kiss Merlin soft and slow and sweet. Merlin's mouth felt warm and wonderful against his, and his fingers tightened a little at Arthur's waist. When they reluctantly drew apart Arthur stayed close and leaned his forehead against Merlin's and just smiled, because he was too happy not to.

Lancelot cleared his throat behind them and Arthur turned, ready to apologise for giving him a bit of a show. He felt his eyes widen when he saw that it wasn't Lancelot at all but-

"_Father_?"

Uther regarded him grimly.

The tiny part of Arthur that wasn't freaking out decided that his father must have had a meeting at the hospital, if the briefcase and enormous stack of papers that he was carrying were anything to go by. But then he dismissed all of the more sensible thoughts from his mind because his stomach was doing somersaults in a most vigorous and persistent way, and Merlin was standing quiet and tense at his side, and his father was glowering at them both.

"Arthur, a word," he said before turning on his heel and heading down the corridor.

Merlin clung to his arm. "This is bad, isn't it?" he said as he watched Uther go. "This is really bad."

"No, it'll be fine, really," Arthur replied. "There's nothing to worry about. My father is a perfectly reasonable man. Honest. Most of the time. I mean, he'll probably threaten to sack you and I'm sure he'll disown me but it'll be okay."

"Oh, _God_," Merlin said, his eyes going wide and his face turning rather pale.

Arthur scrambled to reassure him. "I don't think he'll really do it. Sack you, I mean. He probably will disown me, though. Er. I'll talk to him?"

"I need to sit down," Merlin said distantly. He perched rather unsteadily on the edge of the desk and buried his head in his hands.

Arthur awkwardly patted his shoulder. "You're not going to faint or anything, are you? Merlin? Merlin?"

"I'm all right," Merlin said, but when he glanced up he still looked pale and miserable. "Really, go. Your father doesn't look very happy right now and just… don't make him angrier than he already is."

He nervously raked a hand through his hair, making it stand at an odd angle, and gave a wobbly smile. Arthur looked between him and his father, now standing halfway down the corridor and looking extremely impatient, and thought, _Damn it all_, before he quickly leaned down and kissed Merlin.

Merlin made a startled sound but he kissed him back, and when Arthur pulled away and saw the expression on Merlin's face - still wary and worried but also surprised and pleased - he knew that he'd done the right thing, even if he could feel his father's eyes boring holes into his back.

*

Uther led him to Dr. Gaius' office, which was empty and, for some strange reason, smelled like a chemistry experiment that had gone drastically wrong. But Uther didn't seem to notice as he barged into the room and settled himself at the desk like he owned the place (which, Arthur supposed, he actually did).

He took his time setting aside his briefcase and papers, no doubt wanting to make Arthur sweat, before he finally fixed his son with a glare. "Who was that young man?" he asked in a tone of voice that attempted to sound friendly and casual but utterly failed.

Arthur's stomach churned enthusiastically. "Merlin," he said. "His name is Merlin."

"And how long have you been seeing him?"

"We're actually going on our first date tonight. Well, second. If you count the coffee shop. But I don't know if Merlin is counting that as our first date, so. Um."

Arthur trailed off, desperately wishing that he hadn't listened to Morgana and had worn a suit after all. At least he'd have a tie to fidget with awkwardly under his father's stern gaze. He settled for burying his hands in his pockets instead, and waited for Uther to speak.

But Uther remained quiet. His behaviour was unnerving - Arthur had expected disapproval, shouting, accusations that he had disgraced himself and the entire Pendragon family, threats of disownment. The sort of reaction that Arthur had been subject to a number of times in his youth, only worse. He hadn't expected _silence_.

And so he blundered on. After all, he didn't think he could make matters any worse.

"He's a nurse and he's... just brilliant, really. He's smart and he's kind and he loves those kids, I mean he _really_ loves them and he would do anything for them so you shouldn't sack him-"

"Arthur-"

"-because Merlin doesn't deserve it and it would only punish the kids anyway, to lose someone like him. And he - he notices things about people, things they don't even realise about themselves-"

"Arthur-"

"-and I haven't even known him that long but I think I'm already in love with him and I never-"

"_Arthur_!"

Arthur stopped and turned to his father, who was watching him with a bemused look on his face.

"Arthur," he said once he knew that he had his son's attention. "I'm not going to sack Merlin."

"You're not?"

"Of course not." He sighed ruefully. "Although I suppose I'll have to depend on Morgana for grandchildren now."

"Then... you're disowning me?"

Uther's expression softened. "Certainly not," he said, standing and coming around the desk so he could rest a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "You are my son and I love you, even though I don't say it as often as I should. I want you to be happy and if Merlin makes you happy, how could I possibly object?"

Arthur felt as if a tremendous weight had been lifted from his shoulders, one that he had been carrying around for a very long time. "Thanks," he said, and if his voice cracked a bit neither one of them acknowledged it. "I thought you'd be disappointed in me."

"That is something you never have to worry about."

Arthur had to swallow around the lump in his throat. "I'm sorry you had to find out like that. It must have been a shock."

"Well, it was a bit of a surprise," Uther admitted. "But I'm certain you would have told me eventually. You always were honest and responsible, even when you were just a boy."

Arthur shrugged, feeling a little embarrassed by his father's uncharacteristic praise.

"There is one matter that I would like to address," Uther said. "It's been a long while since we discussed it and the circumstances were quite different at that time." A vague look of terror crossed his face and he cleared his throat awkwardly before pressing on. "Although an unwanted pregnancy is clearly no longer a concern I do hope that you're both being careful and using protection-"

"Father!" Arthur exclaimed. "It hasn't - we haven't - I assure you, we'll be-" He shook his head, blushing furiously and feeling thoroughly scandalised.

"Good lad," Uther said, looking just as embarrassed, and they mutually and silently agreed never to return to this topic ever again.

"You'll bring Merlin around for dinner some time, won't you?" he asked as he gathered his briefcase and papers, still not looking Arthur in the eye. "I'd like to meet him."

"Of course," Arthur replied, relaxing a bit. "I'd - I'd like you to meet him, too."

"Very good," Uther said, all business again, and a moment later he was gone, leaving Arthur alone in Dr. Gaius' pungent office.

Arthur shook his head a little as he watched his father go. Later, he and Morgana would spend some time discussing the horror of enduring The Talk with Uther not once but twice in one's lifetime and whether or not he was actually turning sweet in his old age, but for now Arthur pushed those thoughts aside. He had to find Merlin.

*

Afterwards, Merlin would deny that he'd hidden in the linen cupboard. He was merely checking the supplies, he'd say, even though his shift had ended ten minutes ago. Someone had to do it, he'd insist, and if he'd happened to be curled up on the floor in a miserable ball of knees and elbows when Arthur finally found him, well, it had been a long day and he was allowed to rest his legs, wasn't he?

"Hi," he said, making no move to un-hunch his shoulders or meet Arthur's eyes. "Were you disowned?"

"No," Arthur said, sitting down beside him. It was a tight squeeze but he managed to tuck himself between Merlin and the shelves brimming with blankets. "And you weren't sacked either."

Merlin lifted his head at that, and his smile was slow and cautious. "Really?"

"Yes, really," Arthur replied. He could tell that Merlin was perking up by the way his shoulders straightened and how his elbows looked a little more cheerful where they rested on his knees, and then he felt something warm and happy settle in his chest when he realised that he was evaluating the mood of Merlin's _elbows_, of all things. "So there's no reason for you to sulk, Merlin. It really doesn't suit you."

"I wasn't sulking!" he said, looking so outraged that Arthur couldn't help but laugh.

"Lancelot must have been mistaken, then. He said you always came in here to sulk. Or to hide."

Merlin muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Traitor," which only made Arthur laugh even more. "And I wasn't hiding," he added. "I was just waiting. For you."

"You were worrying," Arthur said, relentlessly bumping Merlin's shoulder with his own and grinning all the while. "Admit it. You were _concerned_ about me."

Merlin's put-upon glare would have been much more convincing if he wasn't fighting back a smile of his own. "I wouldn't have bothered, if I'd known you would be such an arse about it."

"Oi! I should go back and tell my father that you're not that brilliant after all."

Merlin's expression softened. "You really said that?"

Arthur shrugged, suddenly feeling awkward, and decided that a quick change of subject was in order. "What were you worried about, anyway? I told you everything would be okay."

"You weren't entirely convincing, you know, with all that talk about being sacked and disowned."

"Yes, well. I had it under control."

Merlin smiled, looking fond. "Of course." He hesitated briefly before pressing on in a rush. "It's just that I never knew my father and I didn't want to be responsible for coming between you and yours. I would have done anything to keep that from happening."

Arthur felt that warm and happy feeling flare in his chest once more but he didn't know what to say, didn't know how to express the affection and gratitude he felt for Merlin at that moment. So, as always, he blurted the first thing that came to mind.

"I never knew my mother," he said, and frowned a little in surprise because that wasn't something he normally spoke about. This time Merlin was the one who changed the subject, though not without wriggling around a bit so that he could reach for Arthur's hand.

"So what happened?" he asked, linking their fingers together. "Today, I mean. With your dad."

"He was more understanding than I ever expected," Arthur said, deciding to leave it at that. There was no need to disturb Merlin with details about the awkward and unexpected direction their conversation had gone. He'd save that sort of trauma for Morgana. "He even invited you to dinner."

Merlin's eyes widened. "Tonight?" he said, sounding uncertain.

"No," Arthur said, shuddering a little. He didn't think he could face his father for at least a month (or two).

"Good," Merlin said, smiling and looking relaxed once more. "Because you and I still have plans and I think we've waited long enough as it is. Come on," he added, getting to his feet and tugging Arthur up beside him.

"I'm still not a girl, Merlin," he grumbled half-heartedly, though he let Merlin pull him to his feet nonetheless. There really wasn't much room in the linen cupboard, certainly not enough for two grown men, and Merlin was grinning and their knees were knocking together and Arthur had no choice but to pull him even closer and kiss him.

But one kiss led to another, and another, until finally Merlin pulled back just enough so that he could lean his forehead against Arthur's and smile at him.

"If we keep this up I really will be sacked," he said. "Or at the very least, we'll miss the movie." But he didn't seem to mind that at all, not when he leaned in right away for another kiss.

"No," Arthur said when that kiss ended. "We'll make it." And he slung his arm around Merlin's shoulders, pulling him close as they stepped outside, together.


End file.
